Kraft Foods Safety Gates

Kraft Foods was in the process of remodeling and upgrading their food processing facility in Albany, Minnesota, and the contractor on the project contacted Dakota Safety to provide safety gates to help bring the building’s mezzanine level up to code. Safety gate allow access to mezzanine levels through the fall protection guard rail. They maintain the integrity of the guardrail when in the closed position. The gates have self-closing mechanisms that automatically close the gates when not in use.

There were numerous openings that required gates, in varying sizes. Most of these were areas where personel need access to the mezzanine level and could easily be accommodated by our standard-sized, self-closing safety gates.

In two instances, the owner wanted an areas where larger items could be moved on and off the mezzanine level and it was necessary to create extra-wide safety gates. A 60” opening was covered by installing two 30” self-closing gates that met in the middle with a special stopping mechanism. A 91” span required a specially-fabricated, two-piece swinging safety gate system. We supplied special 90° mounts designed to hold the extra weight of these oversized custom gates.

Both the standard and custom safety gates were provided in all-stainless steel construction, to meet FDA standards for food processing facilities. We also provided special hoop end caps to prevent food buildup and mold growth; other unique modifications for food processing environments were also included.

All our self-closing gates meet OSHA-mandated 42” height requirements for the top rail and the 21” lowers rail. Although, we did not provide them in this case, bumper pads are available for additional gate protection when passing pallets through the gates.